It's not to say that the foods featured on this list are things you should never eat again, as most of them are harmless and outright yummy, however, consumed incorrectly they can be extremely dangerous and even deadly, so take note.
1.Stone Fruit Pips & Apple Seeds
Cherries, plums, pears, peaches, apricots and so on are nature's form of candy, but stay away from the seeds (as well as the bark and leaves). They contain amygdalin, a compound that produces cyanide. Large doses can lead to dizziness and vomiting, increased blood pressure, kidney failure, coma, and even death.
Even in small doses, cyanide can cause rapid breathing, seizures, and possibly death. So when chomping into an apple beware of the seeds which also have cyanide, luckily, apple seeds have a protective coating that keeps the cyanide from entering your system if you accidentally eat them, but it’s good to be cautious.
2.Killer Carbs
Ordinary potatoes, if consumed at the wrong time, can be dangerous. The leaves, stem, and sprouts of a potato contain glycoalkaloids, a poison found in flowering plants called nightshades, of which a potato is one.
If you leave a potato in poor conditions (as in too moist or bright, or you just let them sit out for too long) they will begin to sprout. It’s suggested to throw these potatoes away, even if you do cut off the shoots, as the poison may be in the potato if too much time has passed. Scientists claim that a 100-pound person would have to eat 16 ounces of a sprouted potato to get ill, which is approximately one baked potato.
3.Microwave Popcorn
It's not so much the kernels as it is the bags they come in. When a chemical that's used in the bag's nonstick coating decomposes, it creates a compound called perfluorooctanoic acid. That acid's been linked to both liver and prostate cancer.
4.Tomato Leaves & Stem
The juicy red fruit contains a poison in it's leaves, Glycoalkaloid, which is known for causing upset stomachs, severe cramping, and anxiety. So steer clear of the leaves and stems when preparing your tomato sauce!
5.Nutmeg
You most likely already have nutmeg in your spice cabinet, however, nutmeg is actually a hallucinogenic. Yes, you can trip on it! Eating one whole will supposedly lead to a type of "nutmeg psychosis," which includes a sense of impending doom. So although nutmeg adds a nice nutty flavour, eaten by the spoonful can cause big problems to your system, even as little as 2 teaspoons can be toxic!
6.Don't Go Nuts With Cashews & Almonds
When you see “raw cashews” at the store, know that they are lying to you. Those “raw” cashews have been steamed to remove a chemical called urushiol, which is also found in poison ivy, if that helps paint a picture!
Consuming actual raw cashews can prove fatal, especially for people with an allergy to poison ivy. So if you ever come across cashews in nature for some reason, don’t eat them. Depending on your sensitivity to poison ivy, as little as a handful of raw cashews could be extremely dangerous to the average consumer.
There are two variations of almonds, sweet almonds and bitter almonds. The bitter ones supposedly contain relatively large amounts of hydrogen cyanide. It's said that even eating just 7 - 10 raw bitter almonds can cause problems for adults, and could be fatal for children.
7.Raw Kidney Beans
You may love to include kidney beans in stews and chillis, but you should never eat them raw. Raw kidney beans contain a toxic agent known as phytohaemagglutnin. As many as a handful of beans could bring on symptoms like vomiting and headaches. Good news, the toxin is significantly diminished when the beans are cooked.
8.Rhubarb Leaves
Consider this a friendly reminder to monitor how many Rhubarb crumbles or cocktails your enjoy, why you say? Because the leaves are poisonous, causing breathing trouble, seizures, kidney failure, and in some cases, death.
9.Elderberries
While this one sounds a little exotic, elderberries are commonly used in jams, wines, and teas. All of this is surprising considering their seeds and leaves contain fatal levels of the cyanide-producing glycoside.
If the fruit is not strained correctly or is too unripe when used, you could be looking at severe nausea and potential coma, or even death. It takes only a cup of incorrectly prepared elderberry juice, wine, or tea to result in mild sickness, but you would have to drink up to five glasses to be in life-threatening danger.
10.Processed Meats
Breaking news - Some people in Canada would prefer to eat bacon than have sex! So the saying "bring home the bacon," is true, however, while bacon is Keto friendly, it's not actually doing your body any good.
Processed meats also include deli meats and hot dogs for example. Eating processed meats increases your cancer risk. Unfortunately, when these processed meats are preserved, cancer-causing substances form, consistently linked to colon cancer.
11.Red Meat & Charred Foods
Only marginally better for us than processed meat, red meat is classified as Group 2A, "probably carcinogenic to humans”. The strongest link between eating red meat and cancer is colorectal cancer, however, there is also evidence of links to both pancreatic and prostate cancer.
Cancer Council recommend that, to reduce your risk of cancer, you should eat no more than 65-100g of cooked red meat per week.
Some research suggests that burnt or charred meat may increase the risk of cancer too. Substances called heterocyclic amines are formed in foods that are cooked at high temperatures and blackened or charred
12.Tuna
The danger in tuna is the mercury that the fish absorbs. Once in your body, mercury will either pass through your kidneys, or travel to your brain and supposedly drive you insane. The FDA recommends children and pregnant women do not consume tuna at all. While it's unlikely that eating a massive amount of tuna in one sitting will kill you, it's a good idea to monitor your weekly intake.
13.Uncooked Shellfish
Apart from shellfish being one of the most common (and one of the deadliest) food allergies, undercooked or raw shellfish is particularly dangerous, as they can absorb microbes/ harmful bacteria from the sea. Therefore shellfish should always be thoroughly cooked, taking extra precaution to raw oysters.
14.Unpasteurised Honey
Pyrrolizidine alkaloids, poisonous toxins, are found in this sweet and sticky treat. If honey isn't pasteurised properly, eating it can lead to headaches, dizziness, weakness and vomiting — plus eating too much of it can be fatal.
15.Super Hot Chilli Peppers
One won't kill you — obviously — but peppers have a chemical called capsaicin. It's what makes them spicy, and it's also what's used in pepper spray. Consuming a lot (like during a dangerous pepper eating contest) can cause your lungs to constrict, so don't be pressured to eat that scary looking chilli for someone else's amusement.
16.Too Much Unpasteurised Cheese
Unpasteurised cheese — or "raw" cheese — is a host for deadly food borne illnesses and bacteria. This unfortunately includes popular varieties like Brie, Camembert and Feta. Some of the bacteria that can make people sick, include E. coli, salmonella, listeria, and Campylobacter. These bacteria can trigger vomiting and diarrhoea, with the possibility of more severe illnesses as well. It's highly recommended to avoid unpasteurised cheese whilst pregnant.
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